Osborne downs Hodgeman County

Monday

Nov 25, 2013 at 9:52 PMNov 25, 2013 at 9:52 PM

By Mark SchnabelNewton Kansan

The only time the Osborne Bulldogs got stopped is when they stopped themselves.

Osborne scored on eight of 10 possessions to post a 56-8 win over the Hodgeman County Longhorns in the Eight-Man Division I State Football Championships at Fischer Field. The game was called with 7:17 remaining in the fourth quarter on the 45-point rule.

Osborne, 13-0, scored on all but two possessions, turning the ball over on lost fumbles.

Maverick LeRock rushed for 123 yards on 19 carries with three touchdowns, and had two catches for 95 yards and two touchdowns.

"We were working as a team," LeRock said. "We played together as a team the whole time. Our line did a great job. Their defense had some trouble with that. We were moving them. We wanted this pretty bad."

Sophomore quarterback Jacob Tiernan hit seven of nine passes for 187 yards and four touchdowns. Jacob Tiernan also rushed for 62 yards. Kenton Ubelacker rushed for 165 yards with a touchdown and caught three passes for 58 yards and two touchdowns.

"If it wasn't for the line, we wouldn't have done anything," Jacob Tiernan said. "Our backs our good. Our line was better I think. We just played a good game today. We played a good team. We had so much support from the town. We have such good support. This is a big deal for the whole town."

Osborne wins its first state title in 30 years. That title was at Class 3A.

Hodgeman County struggled to move the ball most of the day. The Longhorns end the season 12-1.

"Their a very big team," Hodgeman County coach Matt Housman said. "Everyone talks about how big a team we were. They are both big and fast. You try to box them in, and they get to the outside. They controlled it."

The Longhorn defense recovered two fumbles and an on-side kick, but a pair of fumbles kept them out of the endzone.

"We talked all year about controlling the line of scrimmage, block and tackle," Housman said. "We didn't want to turn the ball over. We did that a couple of times. We had a good season. A lot of people were surprised about our record, but we had a good season. We just lost to a very good team."

Osborne dominated from the start, scoring on four of its first five possessions. Only a fumble near the Hodgeman County goalline kept the Bulldog offense from a perfect half.

Hodgeman County was forced to punt on four of its possessions. The Longhorns got to the Osborne two, but fumbled the ball away.

The Longhorns rolled the dice to start the second half, recovering an on-side kick, but fumbled the ball back on the following play, setting up a Bulldog score. Osborne made another defensive stop, but fumbled the ball back in its own territory.

Hodgeman County broke the shutout on a 56-yard run by Kreger with 1:01 remaining in the third quarter. Washburn ran in the two-point conversion. Osborne replied with two scores to end the game.